Manny scratched from game with sore wrist

SAN FRANCISCO -- Manny Ramirez, playing for Triple-A Sacramento as he prepares to join the A's, was scratched from Sunday's game at Albuquerque because of a sore left wrist.

A's assistant general manager David Forst said Ramirez expects to return to the lineup Monday, the San Francisco Chronicle is reporting.

Ramirez is on a 10-game assignment with the River Cats. He is eligible to join the A's on May 30 after his 50-suspension for violating Major League Baseball's drug policy ends.

Ramirez went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts Saturday for Sacramento.

A's manager Bob Melvin said he hadn't received a detailed update on Ramirez's condition.

"We're' looking to see if the bat speed's still there and how he gets through these 10 days," Melvin said. "If there's a time frame where he's losing some time, we might back it up or whatever. We'll rely on the people that are watching him at this point. We have enough going on here to where my focus is more on what's going on here. We have some DL issues, guys coming back before he will be here. I'm a little more focused on that now, but I certainly read the reports. We'll be updated every day on what he's doing down there."

A's place McCarthy on DL with shoulder strain

SAN FRANCISCO -- Add one more key name to the Oakland A's disabled list.

Right-hander Brandon McCarthy was placed on the 15-day DL on Sunday with a strained right shoulder, retroactive to Friday, the team announced before its game against San Francisco.

The A's recalled right-handed reliever Jim Miller from Triple-A Sacramento to take McCarthy's spot on the roster.

McCarthy has battled shoulder problems throughout much of his career. Last year he missed six weeks with a stress reaction in his right scapula, an issue he has faced in four of his past five seasons. Earlier this month he went 10 days in between starts because of soreness in his right shoulder.

"Things were getting progressively more sore and just really not recovering in between [starts]," McCarthy said. "It was at a point where I just felt it was best to shut it down and give it a little bit of rest and let it try to get itself back together. I think everything's fine in there. I think it just might be really fatigued."

This marks his seventh career trip to the disabled list and second in two seasons with the A's. He joins outfielders Coco Crisp and Yoenis Cespedes and third baseman Brandon Inge, among others, on the DL.

McCarthy said he had an MRI two weeks ago "when we were looking for something," but the test revealed no problem.
"It was completely clean," McCarthy said. "It leaves everyone pretty confident it's just really tired."

McCarthy plans to stop throwing for a few days and resume his throwing regimen once he's pain-free.

"He's got some shoulder stiffness, and based on his history we want to be proactive," A's manager Bob Melvin said. "We don't want to push it to a point that potentially he's out a significant amount of time like he was last year. So hopefully we can combat this with a two-week period."

McCarthy was 3-0 with a 2.43 ERA over his past four starts. He is 3-3 with a 2.95 ERA for the season.

Melvin said he'll have to call up a pitcher Tuesday from Sacramento to take McCarthy's spot in the rotation. Graham Godfrey, who was with the A's earlier this season, is the likely target.

Miller, who opened the season at Sacramento, was called up on April 25 and made six relief appearances for the A's, logging a 1.93 ERA. He was optioned to Sacramento on May 11. After being sent down, Miller made two appearances for the River Cats, allowing a run in 3 1/3 innings. Overall with Sacramento, he is 0-2 with two saves and a 2.92 ERA in 10 relief appearances.

Melvin said the A's called up Miller because their bullpen has been taxed lately and needed another fresh arm, especially a right-hander. Including Miller, the A's have three right-handers and five lefties in their bullpen.

"And his performance was good for us," Melvin said. "He's a guy that can give you length, he can match up. There are a lot of things he can do. He's really come a long way from Spring Training for a guy that really wasn't on the radar as far as the big league team, to pitch as well performance-wise. He pitched his way here and has done it again."

Miller said he's ready for any role the A's want him to fill.

"I've been doing a lot of two-inning stuff down there," Miller said. "I had the one outing up here that was three innings. It's whatever they need. If they need an inning, they need two, they need three. It's whatever they need."

Worth noting

 Crisp took batting practice again Sunday, and Melvin said there's a "decent chance" that he'll be activated from the disabled list on Monday. Crisp has been sidelined by an inner ear infection and hasn't played since May 2. He has played in only 18 games this season.

 Cespedes (left hand) is eligible to come off the disabled list on Tuesday, but Melvin said there's "a fairly good chance" he won't be ready by then. Cespedes has yet to resume swinging a bat since his injury. "So until he starts swinging the bat, I don't know when he would come back," Melvin said.

 Third baseman Brandon Inge (groin) has yet to resume baseball activities since landing on the disabled list. He's eligible to be activated on May 28.

Eric Gilmore is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.